March 2015 flight activity springs forward, rises 2.6% over March 2014

March business aviation flight activity followed its usual path and posted a significant increase from February to finish the month up a substantial 14.1%.

All operational categories recorded double digit monthly gains, with Part 91 posting the largest increase, up 14.9% from February. The Fractional & Part 135 markets also posted impressive gains of 14.3% & 12.9% respectively.

Looking at the aircraft categories, flight activity was led by small cabin aircraft which posted an increase of 15.8%. Turboprop flight activity followed with a monthly increase of 15.1%. Mid-size & large cabin aircraft posted gains of 13.5% & 10.7%. All individual segments posted double digit gains for the month with the exception of Part 91 large cabin aircraft, which posted an increase of 9.7%. Part 91 turboprops recorded the largest monthly gain for an individual segment, up 17.7%.

Reviewing year over year flight activity (March 2015 vs. March 2014); TRAQPak data indicates that March 2015 posted an increase of 2.6%. The results by operational category were strong for the Part 91 & Part 135 markets, up 3.8% & 3.2% in that order.

The Fractional market finished the period down 3.8%. Flight activity by aircraft category was up across the board with large cabin aircraft leading the way, up 4.9% from March 2014. The small & mid-size cabin markets posted gains of 2.3% & 2.0% respectively. The turboprop market posted a gain of 2.1%. The largest year over year gain for an individual segment occurred in the Part 135 large cabin market, which saw an increase of 10.3%.

Next Month’s Forecast Looking ahead to next month…TRAQPak analysts estimate there will be a 1.5% increase in overall flight activity year over year for April 2015.

TRAQPak Aircraft Categories:

Turbo Prop Single Engine Turboprop Aircraft and Multi-Engine Turboprop Aircraft.
Small Cabin Jet Very Light Jets (VLJ) and Light Jets (LJ)-Jet aircraft with a maximum takeoff weight of less than 20,000 lbs.
Mid-Size Cabin Jet Mid-size Jets (MJ) and Super Mid-size Jets (SMJ) - Jet aircraft with maximum takeoff weight of over 20,000 to 41,000 lbs.
Large Cabin Jet Large Jets, Ultra-Long Range and Heavy Jets – Jet aircraft with maximum takeoff weight of over 41,000 lbs. For weight over 41,000 lbs and Ultra-Long Range and Heavy Jets having an NBAA IFR Range above 6,000NM.

ARGUS TRAQPak data is serial-number specific aircraft arrival and departure information on all IFR flights in the US (including Alaska and Hawaii) and Canada. The tables reflect business aircraft activity data for March 1-31, 2015 vs. February 1-28, 2015 and March 1-31, 2015 vs. March 1-31, 2014 respectively.
BlueSky Business Aviation News | 16th April 2015 | Issue #316
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